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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 116 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  2. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  3. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  4. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  5. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  6. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  7. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  8. Where did you ________________ them?
  9. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  10. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  11. Have you found your soul ________________?
  12. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  13. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  14. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  15. The ball is in your ________________.
  16. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  17. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  18. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  19. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  20. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  21. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  22. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  23. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  24. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. patient — a sick person
  2. bat — in an idiom
  3. bass — low music
  4. bat — for baseball
  5. mug — a cup
  6. mate — a friend
  7. tear — from crying
  8. mug — to rob
  9. march — music
  10. mug — a face
  11. mate — a partner
  12. mate — to breed
  13. court — of a king
  14. court — of law
  15. court — for sport
  16. bass — the instrument
  17. tear — to rip
  18. bass — the fish
  19. march — the month
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. bat — the animal
  22. tear — from crying
  23. patient — calm and waiting
  24. march — the month

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com